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PACKAGING MACHINE Filed Aug. 28, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 248 F IG.7.

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ATTORNEYS Dece 4, B945. F. w. KucKLmsKY 2,390,107 PAGKAGING MACHINE v Filed Aug. 28, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet `5 .FYQJ Kyklnsky Y i AI'IORNEYS ilk/az, .w um

De@ 4? H945 F.' w. KucKLlN'sKY 2,390,107

PACKAGING MACHINE 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Aug. 28, 1,941

ATTORNEY .5.

Patented Dec. 4, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PACKAGING MACHINE Fred W. Kuoklinsky, Newark, N. J., anignor to Esther M. Kucklinsky, Montclair NNI.

` Application Auguit 28, 1941, Serial No. 408,593

2 Claims.

various relative dimensions. Large and small lo cartons, or cartons which are of various heights and widths may, therefore, be sealed by employing a single machine instead ot its being necessary to` have a plurality of machines for use in a plant where the products make-it necessary to use a number of different cartons.

Another object is to provide a machine .which will close and seal a carton while preserving the intended shape of the carton. This control over the shape of the carton makes it possible to use lo satisfactorily relatively light weight carton material, although this feature is also valuable in connection with any of the papers or cardboards (including corrugated paper) ordinarily used in the manufacture of cartons.' I

Still another object is to provide a mechanism for applying glue or other adhesive to both sides of one of the flaps of the container and then moving the ilap to sealing position against other flaps without removing any of the glue from either side. This makes the gluing mechanism very efiicient and prevents the glue 4from being displaced to points where it might clog, the mechanism or otherwise interfere with correct operation.

Another object and advantage is that during the various steps of closing and sealing the carton the contents of the carton are prevented from escaping, thereby making it possible to use the apparatus for closing and sealing cartons whose contents are in the form of small grains or particles.

With ,theI foregoing, and other objects and ad' vantaees. which will become apparent later on, the invention consists-in aconstruction and relative arrangement of parts, an embodiment ot which appears in the drawings accompanying land iorming a part oi this specincation. the novel features ofk the invention being pointed out in the claims appended hereto. 1 Insaid drawings: f c a Fig. 1 yis a Viewk illustrating a carton before Fig. 2 is a view illustrating a carton ready to be placed in the machine for sealing.

Fig.3isapianviewoithomachino.

40 carton il containing 45 ing section Fig. 4 is a right side elevation of the machine.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the lines 5-5 of Fig. 3'.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line e-s or Fig. a.

. Fig. '7 is a sectional view taken along the'line 1-1 of Fig. 3. A

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view taken ontnelineHof-Fig.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view oi one of the compression belts taken along the line I-l-i of 1118.3. Fig. l0 is a view of a glue pot taken along .line lI-ii of F18. 3.

Fig. 11 is a sectional view of a track taken along u'tnenne n-u omas.

Fig. 12 is a sectional view taken along the line i2--i2 of Fig. 1l.

Fig. 13 is ja sectional view of a track taken along thellne IS-II ofFlg.3. Fig. 14 is a sectional view taken along the line li-N of Fig. 3. y

Fig. 15 is a sectional view taken along the line .i5-l5 ofFig. 3..

Fig. 16 is a sectional view taken along the line u n -ls or Fic. s.

Fig. 1'1 is a sectional view takena little further back o! Fig. 18.

Fig. 18 is a perspective view of the glued ilap folding plow.

Fig. 19 isa perspective view of the outer i'lap folding plow.

One type of carton which themachine is designed to close and seal is shown at lo in Fig. 1.- I tfhas small flaps I2 and I4 which are closed byy hand after the particular merchandise to be packed is inserted in the carton by the operator. r".l'he' lower flap l0 is also turned 'up by hand while the outer ilap i8 is left in its original position, the ilaps then appearing as shown in Fig. 2. The the merchandise is then placed on the machine to be closed and sealed.

As viewed in Fig.` 3. the machine may be divided into threefsections: a loading section A." a sealing section B and a compression or dry- Sections A and C may be of any desired length depending upon the number of operators placing cartons on .the machine, type of carton, drying time, etc. The mechanism of the sealing section B is suplported by a hollow frame 20 having two upstanding walls 22 and 14 in which are mounted two cross rods 28 and Il. A left hand traine member in mg.' e) ls fastened tightly te the cross mds and a right hand frame member 32 (Fig, 4)

is arranged to slide on the cross rods. Frames -rods 84 and 88 88 and 82 are almost identical except that they face in opposite directions.- Furthermore, each frame carries practically identical mechanism.

To provide adjustment for cartons of various depths, provision is made to slide the frame 82 toward and away from the ilxed frame 88, by means of a crank 84, fastened to a rod 88 (Fig. 6) One end of rod 88 is joumaled in the frame 88, and the other end is threaded to engage corresponding threads in the frame 82.

Journaled in the frames 88 and 32 is a main drive shaft 88 in which is a keyway 48 extending the entire length of the shaft (Figs.y 3 and 6).

Fastened tightly on the left hand end of shaft 88 is a sprocket 42, driven by a chain 44 from a speed reducer 48, which in turn is driven by a motor 48 through a belt 88 and a variable speed pulley 82. 'I'he motor 48 is arranged to be slidably adjusted on cross bars 84 by means of screw 58 and crank 58.

Referring te Figs. 4, 5 and 6: Keyed to the shaft 88 yet slidable thereon, are two large sprockets 88 and 62 having hubs with annular grooves 12 and 14 frame member 88 is a cover with bosses 14 and 18 carrying forked members 88 and 82 respectively. 'I'he fork 88 engages the annular groove 12 in the hub of sprocket 88, while the fork 82 engages the annular groove 84 of the sprocket 88. Likewise, a cover 84 on the under side of the frame 82 has bosses 88 and 88 which carry forked members 88 and 92 respectively. The fork 88 engages the annular groove 88 in the hub of the sprocket 62, and fork 82 engages the annular groove 14 of the sprocket 18. IIn this fashion, all four sprockets are held in proper relationship with the fr 82 is moved along the shaft 88 the sprockets 82 and 18 move along with the frame while still being keyed to the shaft in keyway 48.

Projecting from the frame 88 are two short (Figs. 6 and 7) which rigidly support a track 88 parallel with the frame 88 which support a similar track |84 the sprocket 82..

conveyor chain ||8 of such width that the vlinks of the chain just straddle track 88 is disposed to operate over sprockets 88 and |88 and along the top of the track 88. A- chain ||2 operates 'over sprockets 82 and |88 and along the top of the track |84. v

As best shown in Figs. 11 and 12, the track |84 hasparallelguides ||4 and ||8 fastenedoneither side of it through spacingstrips ||8 and' |28. The top edges of the parallel guides ||4 and ||8 are smooth and parallel with' the to'p edge of the track |84. Grooves |22 and |24 are cut the entire length of and parallel with the top edges of guides ||4 and ||8, respectively. Attached to the side ot the guide ||8 isa guard plate |28 which extends above the top surface of the guide.

Asshowninllig.7,track88alsohasparallel luldes |28 and |88 |84. Grooves |88 ames 88 'and 82;:and as the frame 4 glue rollers |88 and |88 in Figs. 5 and 12, after a. hand |42 has traveled around the sprocket |88, the pins |44 and |48 are guided into the grooves |22 and |24 in guides ||4 and 8. Thus, throughout the travel of any hand along'the tracks 88 and |84, the face |48 of the hand will be held perpendicular to the guide surface of the track. e The conveyor chains ||8 and ||2 and the hands |42 are so matched that a carton 8 placed between plates |28 and |48 and against the faces |48 will be perpendicular to the line of the track as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. This is an important part of the construction for preserving the rectangular shape of the' cartons during sealing operations.

Extending upward from the top of the frame 82 (Figs. 4 and 6) are two parallel rods |58-guiding a sliding membe |82 which is movable up ordown by means of a crank |54 and screw |88. The member |82 has an extending arm |58 which supports an'aligning bar |88 directly over and parallel with guide 8 on the track |84.

A aligning berv |82 is supported over the guide |28 ony the track 88 from the frame 88 by an arm. |84 on a member |88 sliding on a pair of rods |88 and movable by a screw |18 and crank |12 (Figs. 5 and 6). The aligning bars |88 and |82 are adjustable to the width of the carton I8 so that as the carton moves along on the supporting and guiding surfaces, it just goes under the bars |88 and |82 and is then supported on three sides and both ends to assure squareness both before and after sealing. As shown'in Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 13, the upper right hand corner oi' the plate |28 is cut down to the level of the guide ||8. At this point is an adjust ably mounted bracket |14 having a flared out portion |18. On the lett hand side of the machine, plate |48 has a similar cut out corner and a bracket I 18 with a ilared out lip |88.

A readily removable glue pot |82 is hung on the frame 82 by means of slides |84 (Figs. 5, 7 and 18). In a similar manner another |88 is attached to the frame 88.

Glue rollers |88 and |88 in the glue pots |88 and |82 are mounted on the frames 88 and 82, respectively. The rollers |88 and |88 have fastened to the opposite ends of their shafts |82 and |84 sprockets |88 and |88 driven by chains 288 and 282 from the Sprockets 88 and 18 on the 'shaft 88. The chains 288 and 282 run over suitable idler take up sprockets 284 and 288. The hubs of the sprockets |88 and |88 also carry gears 288 and 2|8, which mesh with pinions 2|2 and 2|4 on shafts 2|8 and 2|8 to turn rollers 228 and 222 at the same surface speed as the glue rollers |88 and |88. The shafts 2|8. and 2|8 are Journaled'in arms 224 and 228, which are pivotally mounted on studs 228 and 288-on the frames 88 and 82, respectively. Ordinarily the small glue rollers 228 and 222 run in contact with thelarge and pick up a coating of glue from the large rollers which dip into the glue pots. When the nap I8 of a'carton is fed bevsmall rollers, the latter are raised the thickness ot the cardboard by the ilap` itself, and a coating. of glue is applied to each side of the flap by the rollers.

Adjustably mounted on the glue pots 88 and |82 vare scraper blades 282 and 884, respectively glue pot and 246 (Fig.

" blades are bent/to form` scraping action takes place (Figs. s, s, '1 and 1o). These blades each have two slots 238 which receive the collars 238 of four adjusting screws 248. After the scraper blades are adjusted b y the screws I48 to attain the proper coating of glue on rollers |88 and |88 the blades are locked in place by' cap screws 242.

Studs 228 and. 238 extend from the frames 38 and 32 and are flattened .on their under sides to facilitate the attachment of vdeector blades 244 which guide the flap I6 of the carton through the gluerollers. The deector plates 248 and 258 perpendicular to and parallel with the tracks 88 and`r |84 and parallel with the aligning bars |88 and |62. The plates 248 and 258 nt closely against the flaps I2 and I4 and hold them closed, the plates and said flaps preventing escape of contents from the cartons while the other flaps A are being glued and moved to sealing positions.

Adapted to be attached by a cap screw 252 in any one of a series of holes 254 in the guide II6 is a plow blade 256 (Figs. 5, and 18) which has a knife edge 258 of such contour as to guide the glued ilap I6 of the carton to a closed position as shown in Fig. 15 and to hold it closed until the outside nap I8 is brought down a sumcient distance to keep all the flaps closed. As shown in Fig. 15, the knife edge 258 is formed on a radius struck from-the point 268 4where the flap I6 is hinged to the carton I8. Thus as the nap is urged to swing upward by the blade 256, the knife edge 258 inscribes a straight-line path over the glued surface of the flap I6 and therefore no to remove glue. Such scraping action would prevent proper sealing and the glue would accumulate and foul the knife and 324.

drilled at 328 to receive compression springs 338 the pin On the frame 32 is formed a boss 386 .which carries an arm 388, in which is clamped a pin 3I8 on which a roller 3I2 (Figs. 3, 4 and 8) is rotatably supported. On the frame 38 is asimilar boss 3I4 carrying' an arm 3|6 on which is a roller 328.

Spaced by the pin 3I8 are two plates 322 and 324 extending toward the rear of the machine.4

The plates are further spaced by spacers 326 (Figs. 5 and 9) secured at intervals between 322 The spacers 326 are recessed and and screws a compression plate rower than the spacing of the to allow freedom of movement. nuts 336 provide adjustment against 338.

' An endless canvas belt 338 (Fig. 3) is extended about the pulley 388 and over adjustable idler pulley 348.

In the same way, on the left hand side of the machine two plates 342 and 344 are spaced by 3I8 and spacers 326. -A compression plate 346 is supported in a similar way by screws 332 and forced out by springs 338. An endless belt 348 passes over pulley 384 and idler pulley 358.

It Yshould be noted so designed that the II2, the glue rollers the compression belts 332. Supported by the screws 334 vwhich `is slightly nar- Screws 332 and the springs here that the machine is conveyor chains, |I8 and |82, |86, 228. and 222 and 333 and 348 all operate at the same surface speed.

edge 258. After the glued flap is swung up into |84 and aligning bar |68, then bends 180 so that the upper edge becomes the lower edge and the tail portion 266 extends in the same direction as and parallel with 264. As shown in Figs. 16- and 17, the outer flap I8 of a carton I8 is brought under the tip 268 of the'gulde and as the carton is moved further along the track by the hand |42 on the conveyor, the flap downward and finally (Fig;- 17) the parallel portion of 264 presses the flap against the glued flap I6 and the compression stage C is reached.

The aligning bar |62 carries a similar plow blade 288 bent in a reverse fashion and fastened by a thumb screw 238 and serving to close the ap I8 at thebther end of the carton.

Referring now to Fig. 8, the frame 32 forms a housing 232 for a spiral gear drive to operate the compression sectlonC ofthe machine'. A spiral gear 234 is keyed to the shaft `-36, yet is slidable thereon. The gear 284 slides with the frame 32, 'while the latter is being adjusted. A matingpiral gear 286 is driven by '284 to turn a shaft 288 on the upper end of which is fastened a pulley 388. By a similar construction (not shown) in frame 38, a shaft 382 (Fig. 3) drives a pulley 384 on the left side of the machine.

holds the carton closed until as I5 is' returned to To support the weight of the compressionsection, a stand 352 (Fig. 4) is employed. 'To the under side of plates 324 and 344 are attached bearing blocks 354 and 356, respectively. Rods 358 pass through the bearing 354 and stand 352, and are tightly fastened in the bearing 356. A threaded rod 36.) is journaled endwise movement in the bearing block 356. The threaded end engages corresponding threads in the block 354. Tight on On adjusting screw 36 (Figs. a sprocket 364 the same size as 362. A chain 366 operates over both sprockets. Thus 'the rotation of the screw 36 is transmitted to the screw 368, and since the pitch of the threads on both screws is the same, the entire right hand portion of the machine receives thesame adjustment both at the center and at the compression end.

To briefly summarize the operations `of sealing a carton: The carton I8 is lled and folded as shown in Fig. 2 and placed on guides II4, II6, |28 and |38 at the loading end of the machine as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. Side plates |26 and |48 keep the flaps I2, I4, and I6 at each end closed and thus retain the contents; AConstantly moving hands |42 (Fig. 11) push the carton I8 along the guides and under the aligning bars |68 and |62. The carton is now confined by three square surfaces at each end and thus 3 and 4) is pinned ',is definitely squared up.

From this point the manipulation of the flaps on one end of the carton only will be described.' it being understood that both ends receive the same treatment at the same time. When the plate |14 is reached (Fig. 13) iiap I8 is allowed to drop out slightly against the bent lip |16. The point of the plate or plow 258 now enters between the nap I6 and the small naps I2 and I4 and' holds I2 and I4 closed until such time its closed travel along the tracks allows I6 to fall still further until itenters under deector plate 248 and anda pin 3I8 plates 322'and 324 and secured against f 368 is a sprocket 362.

position. Further corner I9 (Fig. 14) oi' the carton to assure a sharp corner when the nap later is bentdown and the carton is finally sealed. A

Further travel of the carton along the tracks finds the leading edge of the glued flap I 8 over` the folding plow 288. Guided by the curved portion of the knife edge 258, the glued flap is bent back to its closed position and is held against the naps I2 and I4 by the straight portion of the edge 258 (Figs. and 16).

The outer nap I8 is now brought under`the influence of the tip 288 of the plow 288, and still further travel of the carton I8 nds the flap I8 folded down to its closed position against the glued surface of the flap I8 by the action of the plow 264, which now holds the carton closed until the compression belt 288 is reached (Figs. 16 and 17).

As the carton I8 moves along further, it is delivered by the hands '|82 to the compression belts 338l and 388, which carry it to the rear of the machine as shown in Figs. 3 and 9. Pressure is exerted against the glued flaps by the springs 330 which press the compression plates 384 and 348 toward each other. This pressure also affords suillcient friction between the belts 1 and the cartons to convey the cartons along. Due to this flexible construction, small variations in the depths of the cartons are equalized.

From all of the foregoing it is apparent that the apparatus may be quickly adjusted tc seal cartons of various dimensions by operating the crank Il to move the track |88 and the associated carrier chain and guides in or out with respect to the stationary guide 88 and the parts asso' ciated therewith, and that this movement will, through the chain 388, effect a corresponding ad- Justmentofthecompressionbeltl. 'I'his gives thesetup necessary for one dimension.- the depth of the carton in the illustrated operation. The guides |88 and I 82 may be similarly raised and lowered by operations of the cranks |88 and |12. The arrangement is such that cartons varying in sine and relative dimensions over a wide range may be sealed by making the sample adjustments as indicated.

, It will also be apparent that the apparatus maintains control over the carton material at all times so that the carton has the right shape when In explaining the invention it been neces-v` sary to describe in detail the construction and operation of the illustrative embodiment shown inthe drawings, but it is apparentthat the invention is capable of various embodiments, with suitable changes in the construction and relative arrangement of the Darts, and it is therefore not the desire to be limited by the description and drawings except to the extent indicated in the claims which follow.

l0 What is claimed is:

1. In a machine for closing and sealing a rectangular carton having a closure flap extending from each of the four sides of the carton, a conveyor or carrier on which a carton is placed with 16 three of the flaps manually folded in substantially the positions they will occupy in the completed closure, a pair of glue applying rollers, guides for turning one of the three flaps outward and directing it between said rollers where- 20 by glue is applied to both sides of the flap, one

of said guides cooperating with the other two of the three flaps to keep the contents in the carton, a portion on said one guide for folding the fourth ap outward at an angle to break the g5 material along the foldline of said fourth flap,

a guide having a helical edge and a straight edge for first folding the glued ilap 'against the other two flaps and then holding it against said naps, a curved guide for folding the fourth ap down against the exposed glued surface of the third flap while said third nap is being held by the aforesaid straight edge, and means on the conveyor or carrier for movingthe carton through and past all of the aforesaid guides whereby to ss close and seal the carton.

2. In a machine for closing and sealing a rectangular carton having a closure ilap extending from each of the four sides of the carton, a conveyor or carrier on which a carton is placed with lo three of the flaps manually folded in substantially the positions they will occupy in the completed closure, a pair of glue-applying rollers, guides for turning one of the three aps outward and directing it between said rollers whereby both sides of the flap are substantially covered with glue, one

of said guides being constructed to cooperate with the other two of the three flaps to keep the contents of the carton from escaping between the adjacent edges of said two flaps, a sheet metal guide having a helical edgeportion-acting on the outer glued surface of the glued iiap to first fold the glued flap against the other two flaps and a straight edge portion for holding it against said Atwo flaps. said helical portion and said straight portion beingconstructed to draw a substantially straight line across the glue on the nap, a curved guide for folding the fourth nap 'down against the exposed glued surface of the third nap, and means on the conveyor or carrier for moving the carton w through and past the glue-applying rollers and all of the aforesaid guides whereby to close and seal .the carton.

.. FRED W..KUCKL1N8KY. 

